Tallahassee police: New Year's death was intentional, not fireworks accident
What local police first announced as a shooting, then said may have been an "accidental death caused by fireworks," now is Tallahassee's first murder of 2024.
An autopsy found evidence that the death was indeed a homicide, occurring within the first few hours of New Year's Day. The initial report was around 2:15 a.m. in the 600 block of Osceola Street.
“When officers arrived, they discovered an adult male victim in the roadway suffering from injuries ... and immediately began rendering aid,” an online incident alert from TPD said. “Sadly, the victim succumbed to his injuries on scene.”
TPD identified the victim as Elgin J. Robinson.
Although the shooting was later classified a murder, the updated incident alert about the autopsy did not specify the manner of death, whether he was killed with a gun or whether fireworks played any role in the death. No arrests have been made and the investigation is still open and active as of Thursday morning, police said.
When asked, a TPD spokesperson said the department was "not able to confirm the cause of death, just that the manner is believed to be a homicide."
The murder follows one of Tallahassee's bloodiest years.
In 2023, 24 people died and at least 72 were injured in 87 serious shootings in the capital city and county, according to a Tallahassee Democrat analysis of gun violence. Monday morning’s death was the first grim reminder of a year that produced sobering statistics, many from a summer surge in shootings.
The summer spike in crime included three separate double homicides, a mass shooting, three murders in a single 24-hour span and five accidental shootings — three of them fatal — in a single month.
Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee police: Jan. 1 death a murder, not fireworks accident
